It looks like wireless Philadelphia is on track for Q3 2007 but no one is looking at the potential downsides.
I am a long time Philadelphia resident, which means I am cynic by defintion. I also currently run my own in-home 802.11b/g wireless network (done so for 5+ years). Is this new “Wireless Philadelphia” project going to drown out or interfere with my current setup?
Information about the actual technology that is going to be deployed is hard to come by since “Wireless Philadelphia” is a private company. At last report, it was going to be 802.11b. A signal strong to cover an entire city block would surely cause some interference problems. And, if I can’t maintain my current network under those conditions, what is my recourse? Not the city for sure (eminent domain kills that approach). The FCC? Will Verizon or Comcast join the fray? Who knows?
I tried looking into the gift horse’s mouth to find out more. The server never responded. Is this just a sampling of the service that is to come?
Some would say “stop being a grouch and just use the new city-wide wireless network.” I’m fairly sure that I won’t be able to maintain a decent game of Quake 4 with the amount of traffic and bandwidth available on that network. Think of it like you would public transportation. Yeah, it works but would you ride it if you had a stretch limo and driver?
I’m just worried that the whole thing was fast-tracked to promote something positive for the City of Philadelphia. I don’t think all of the technical aspects have been explored. And, Earthlink wants it because this is just another way for them to perpare for their inevitable exit from the dialup arena.
I’ll continue to track this and provide more insight when I can.
Contributed by: smaffei

It looks like wireless Philadelphia is on track for Q3 2007 but no one is looking at the potential downsides.
I am a long time Philadelphia resident, which means I am cynic by defintion. I also currently run my own in-home 802.11b/g wireless network (done so for 5+ years). Is this new “Wireless Philadelphia” project going to drown out or interfere with my current setup?
Information about the actual technology that is going to be deployed is hard to come by since “Wireless Philadelphia” is a private company. At last report, it was going to be 802.11b. A signal strong to cover an entire city block would surely cause some interference problems. And, if I can’t maintain my current network under those conditions, what is my recourse? Not the city for sure (eminent domain kills that approach). The FCC? Will Verizon or Comcast join the fray? Who knows?
I tried looking into the gift horse’s mouth to find out more. The server never responded. Is this just a sampling of the service that is to come?
Some would say “stop being a grouch and just use the new city-wide wireless network.” I’m fairly sure that I won’t be able to maintain a decent game of Quake 4 with the amount of traffic and bandwidth available on that network. Think of it like you would public transportation. Yeah, it works but would you ride it if you had a stretch limo and driver?
I’m just worried that the whole thing was fast-tracked to promote something positive for the City of Philadelphia. I don’t think all of the technical aspects have been explored. And, Earthlink wants it because this is just another way for them to perpare for their inevitable exit from the dialup arena.
I’ll continue to track this and provide more insight when I can.
Contributed by: smaffei